Covering.



1. H. MUNRQ. covemuc. Y

APIiLICATION FILED MAR. 13,-1912. RENEWED MAY 14.1917- 1,250,62 2. PatentedDec. 18,1917.-

' 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 i 'cntor: sE

COVERING. l

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 18, 191?.

Application filed March 13, 1912, Serial No. 683,556. Renewed May 14, 1917. Serial No. 168,590.

To all whom it'may concern: 7

Be it known that I, JAMES H. MUNRO, of Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Coverings, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on drawings designating like parts.

This invention relates to coverings for roofs and other surfaces, and is of special utility when embodied in the construction of covering units possessing some of the properties of roofing tiles, as for'example the ease with which they may be-handled, their durability, and their weatherprodf and fireproof qualities, but of much less weight for agiven area of surface covered, and less expensive to manufacture and to lay, my imweather or a high degree of heat, and so may be constituted of material of an oleaginous character, and therefore specially qualified to exclude rain and other flulds from the surface covered, my present invention constituting a development of and improvement over, that disclosed in my Letters Patent No. 967 ,5 42, granted August 16, j

1910, and to which reference may be had for the general problem involved.

'To accomplish, therefore, my-primary object of providing a coverin having a substantially continuous, flexi le surface of heat-proof, wear-resisting material conforming closely in detail with the contour of its support, and rotecting permanently from atmospheric e ects a waterproofing element, I prefer to utilize an artificial stone or concrete comprising such materials as Portland cement, with granular or My material such as coarse sand, 'granu ated stone or other mineral substance, and I prefer to mold the aforesaid concrete in the form of an extended sheet or unit which can be rolled up for convenience in storage and installation, and preferably the refractory material will be formed on one or both sides of a'layer of oleaginouscement, such as asphalt, which may be combined in any suitable manner with the refractory layer, either alone or carried by a suitable vehicle, as for example a suitable fabric, such as burlap, or a, fibrous material which holds the concrete in unit form, whether as a backing or an intermediate stratum, Fibers of like suitable material may be used in place of a woven fabric, the fi ers preferably entering the cement layer or layers at their free ends, and belngpermeated by'the asphalt, so that the latter forms a continuous waterproof layer, co-extensive with the covering.

Whatever the material, I prefer in general to form each unit with a substantially continuous surface, although, asa modification, itmay if desired be weakened by scoring, or

otherwise, either in longitudinal or tr F- verse directlons, 01' th, so that when laid it can be readil broken and deformed fit the contour 0 its support, but ordinarily w1ll-l1e fiat, and, when so formed, this cross scoring serves also the double purpose of dividing the surface above into tess'ellae pleasln'g in appearance and affording a safe tread for foot traffic, while, if desired, crossscorings of the under surface may be--pro-.-,-

vided, to furnish channels to distribute along the lines of weakness; into position to heal the fractures, 21 certain portion of the excess of pitch or'other bedding cemenfijf such a bedding be provided, although my improved coverin may be nailed or otherwise fastened directly to its support.

Among the most important objects of my invention, and one which efiects a notable e5 advantage in the construction of my improved covering, is that the unitsmay be manufactured at a distance from their in-,

stallation, out of cement which can besesvsoned in a suitably damp environment, so in that it isnot liable to shrink and crack in.

.place on the surface to be covered, a factor in. the construction of the covering material, and at a suitable temperature, so that when "he covering shall have been delivered for nstallation, the workmen required for. its emplacement inay be of the type ordinarily available everywhere, since the completed covering can be set in place as already indicated, or laid in a bed oii pitch swabbed on the surface to be covered as emplacement proceeds.

Still another important object of my in-' vention is to provide a laminated. covering built up of laminae of Portland cement concrate preferably united by one or more layersvof cement such as Portland cement applied in a plastic condition.

The various features of my invention will be illustrated and described fully in the accompanying drawings and specification and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figural. is a fragmentary view, in perspective, of portion of a covering in the construction of which my invention has been embodied;

Figs. and 3 are res actively fragmentary views in plan and eevation respectively, illustrating a mode of scoring the covering to facilitate transverse deformation oi the covering;

Figs. 4, 5 and *5 respectively are views 111 vertical section illustrating portions of coverings embodying my invention in various arrangements.

, in the embodiment of my invention selected for illustration and description to enable ready and complete understanding of my improvements, the part designated by the reference numeral 1 is a layer of stonelilte material of any suitable composition, one convenient substance comprising a concrate containing Portland cement with a granular or gritty ingredient 2 such as coarse sand, the extent and thickness oithis lid layer in each installation being suited to the exigencies of the particular installation.

For roof coverings I prefer to form the layer 1 rather thin, and extended in sheets or strips each of sufficient area to cover a substantial proportion of the roof, andwlien so formed I prefer to provide a suitable vehicle such as fibers 3, which may be in woven or felted form, or sown through or upon the surface of, the concrete at the time workmen on the job, and use there may 1 ea er-ea the time of manufacture, or by swabbing the foundation. with the layer 6 (see Fig. 5) or both coating the concrete and foundation 7 the coatings uniting to form a unitary layer 6.

The coatingon the concrete may-be of high-melting asphalt, applied by experts at the factory where the concrete layer 1 is made, and will preferably be so applied to insure permanency, and'the bedding coating may be applied by less experienced a made not only of high-melting asp alt, which is of course preferable where the conditions of weather and labor warrant such use, but/also a low melting asphaltum or pitch may be utilized where found more convenient, as it is thoroughly protected by the refractory, stonclike, heatproof layer 1, in accordance with m invention.

An object of meta 1e importance is to provide the layer 1 of stonelike character by manufacturing and seasoning it under clamp conditions suitable to render'it hard and unshrinkable, so that it constitutes virtually a stone veneer, wearproof and heatproo'f.

This layer 1 may be fractured by inten tion or accident in laying or in use, and is thus deformable to enter into conformity with the contour of the roofer other surface 7 covered, but its fiuidproof properties are not impaired by such .l'ractures, which are healed, as indicated at8, by the fluidproof stratum, and thus my improved covering affords asubstantially continuous, stonelike prepared material for roofing and analogous purposes, deformable transversely and capable of emplacement in units of substaniial area.

To facilitate this deformation, if it be d8". sired, for example, to roll up, the units for transportation, the sheets or strips 1 may be scored transversely in one direction as at 9 in Figs. 2 and 3, or in the other direction as at 10, either or both, and on one or both sides, in accordance with the exigencies of diverse situations.

Wherever possible, I prefer to preserve the surface unbroken, in order to reduce to a minimum all solution in the continuity of the heatproof and wearproof element.

In Fig. 5 I have shown a layer'l of stonelike material constructed substantially as illustrated in Fig. 1, laid on a foundation '3 with an intervening fiuidproof stratum 6.

in Fig. l shown a modified arrangement, comprising a. plurality of layers 1 with an intervening layer of fluid roof masuch as roofing paper 16, aid on a four ion In Fig. 6 still another modification comprises a, plurality of layers l of the stonelilre concretev applied to a foundation 7 has-been provided with a plurality Iliill t ee esa oi layers 66 of fluid-proofed material such as roofin paper, and these layers 1 may be applied any suitable method,- as for example, y superposition, one after the other, swabbing on layers or coats 61 of fluid-proof material such as asphaltum or pitch as the process progresses.

These illustrations are given merely by Way of example of the various modes of installing my improved veneer of stonelike concrete.

For example the layer 61 of cement shown in Fig. 2 may be of Portland cement or other cementitious substance applied in plastic condition and waterproof but not necessarily flexible.

Having illustrated and described my invention thus fully, I Wish it understood that I do not limit myself to the specific materials and construction illustrated and described by way of exampl nor in general lo I limit myself otherwise than as set fo th in the claims, read in connection with this specification.

What I claim as new,and 'desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States of America, is': l

1. A portable covering of the class described; comprising a plurality of thin layers'of heat-proof stonclike material; and an intervening layer of highly flexible, moistune-proof material secured to said layersphysically and adhesively, said coveringconstituting a unitary heat-proof and moisture-proof structure deformable transversely; substantially as described.

2. A covering device of the class de scribed; comprising a plurality of layers of proof material; said layers being united to form a frangible structure retaining its heat-proof and moisture-proof qualities as a unitary structure after fracture, and .capabio of transportation and emplacementas a unit. Y

3. A. portable covering device of the class described; comprising a layer of burlap having monolithic layers of Portland cement moldedoneachsurface, and perms ated with asphalt of high melting point; substantially as described} 4. A flexible covering of the class described; said covering comprising'a sheet of wear-resisting cement molded and cured on each side ofa fabric and cross-scored on each surface to form tessellee, and cleformable longitudinally and laterally; constituting a stonelike unit emplaceable as such.

Signed at Newark in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, this 23d day of February, 1912.

JAMES H. MUNEO,

Witnesses: A. S; GILLNT H. M. Eczema. 

